Each holiday season, members of Healthy Start, part of the Glendale Unified School District, organize a holiday toy drive. Last year they provided 230 students with toys. This year, they had 388 students sign up to receive gifts.

The mission of Glendale Healthy Start is to improve the lives of students and their families in need by providing social, emotional and academic assistance and to assist families with basic needs such as food, bus passes/tokens and shoes. Over the years, Healthy Start has helped many families with various needs, including direct and indirect services.

This year’s holiday tree in the Healthy Start lobby was donated by collaborative member Mark Yeager of the YMCA. The tree is dedicated to the GUSD foster youth. The tree had 58 butterflies decorating it representing each of the 58 foster youth in Glendale schools.

GUSD employees participated by sponsoring a foster student and purchasing an appropriate gift for that child not to exceed $20.

The office staff contacted families that they had a present in their office.